Zakaria Zubeidi
Encyclopedia
Zakaria Muhammad 'Abdelrahman Zubeidi (b. 1976) is a former Palestinian
militant leader, who recently ended his years on Israel's most-wanted list by handing over his guns to the Palestinian National Authority
and accepting Israel
i amnesty. He had been the Jenin
chief of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
, and alleged to be a chief strategist of suicide bombers by the Israeli government. However, in mid-2007, he renounced militancy and committed himself to cultural resistance through theater. He is considered a "symbol of the Intifada". Zubeidi is currently married with two children—a son, Muhammad, and a daughter.
membership in the late 1960's. He worked instead as a labourer in an Israeli iron foundry, did some private teaching on the side, and became a peace activist. The first Israeli Zubeidi had ever met was the soldier who came to take away his father for alleged membership of Fatah. His father died of cancer, leaving Zubeidi's mother Samira to raise their eight children alone.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, during the First Intifada
, Israeli human rights activist Arna Mer-Khamis
opened a children's theater in Jenin, "Arna's House", to encourage understanding between Israelis and Palestinians. Dozens of Israeli volunteers ran the events, and Samira, believing that peace was possible, offered the top floor of the family house for rehearsals. Zubeidi, then aged 12, his older brother Daoud, and four other boys around the same age formed the core of the troupe.
Zubeidi attended the UNRWA school in Jenin Refugee Camp, and by all accounts was a good student. In 1989, at age 13, he was shot in the leg as he threw stones at Israeli soldiers. He was hospitalised for six months and underwent four operations, but was left permanently affected, with one leg shorter than the other and a noticeable limp. At age 15, he was arrested for the first time (again for throwing stones) and jailed for six months. At that time he had become the representative of the other child prisoners to the governor. He dropped out of high school in his first year after being released. Soon after, he was arrested again for throwing Molotov cocktail
s and imprisoned for 4 and a half years. In prison, he learned Hebrew, and became politically active, joining Fatah.
On release after the 1993 Oslo Accords
, he joined the Palestinian Authority's Palestinian Security Forces
He became a sergeant, but left, disillusioned, after a year, complaining: "There were colleagues whom I had taught to read who were promoted to senior positions because of nepotism and corruption."
He went to work illegally in Israel, and for two years earned a good living as a contractor for home renovations in Tel Aviv and Haifa. He was eventually apprehended in Afula and after a brief incarceration for working in Israel without a permit, deported back to Jenin. With his path to work in Israel blocked, Zubeidi turned to auto theft. In 1997, he was caught with a stolen car, and was given a fifteen-month sentence. He served the time, was released and returned to the camp. He became a truck driver in Jenin, transporting flour and olive oil, but in September 2000 lost his job when the West Bank
was sealed off due to the Second Intifada.
. The Israeli Army then launched a full-scale offensive in the Jenin refugee camp
, demolishing hundreds of homes, leaving 2,000 homeless. Ten days of fighting ensued after which 52 Palestinians and 23 Israeli soldiers were dead.
On top of his grief for his family and friends, Zubeidi was greatly embittered by the fact that none of the Israelis who had accepted his mother's hospitality, and whom he had thought were his friends, tried to contact him.
In a 2006 interview he stated angrily, "You took our house and our mother and you killed our brother. We gave you everything and what did we get in return? A bullet in my mother’s chest. We opened our home and you demolished it. Every week, 20-30 Israelis would come to do theatre there. We fed them. And afterward, not one of them picked up the phone. That is when we saw the real face of the left in Israel."
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades may reach peace with Israel, he says, but he won’t personally. He won’t forgive the killing of his mother and brother and the razing of his house.
Losing hope in the Israeli peace camp, he joined the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
, an armed wing of Fatah. Arna's son, Israeli actor Juliano Mer-Khamis
, did return to Jenin in 2002 and looked for the boys who had been in the theater group. Zubeidi had turned to armed resistance, Daoud was sentenced to 16 years in prison for militant activities, and the other four were dead. In 2004, Mer-Khamis completed a documentary film about the group, Arna's Children
. Zubeidi's face was slightly disfigured by fragments of shrapnel from a bomb that he mishandled in 2003.
, recalling him saying "'Zakaria, buddy, I love you, we're marching to Jerusalem!'", Zubeidi also stated "I don't take orders from anyone. I'm not good at following." At the time, he was enthusiastic about the intifada, dismissing the view of Palestinians who wanted to end it and warned the new generation of Palestinians would "fight better".
In June 2004, he kidnapped the then PA governor of Jenin, Haidar Irshard, and in Zubeidi's own words, "beat the shit out of him" for refusing to pay salaries to the al-Aqsa Brigades. He also burnt down the local office of the Palestinian Legislative Council
. Four attempts by Israel have been made to assassinate him. In one such attempt, in 2004, an Israeli police unit killed five other brigade members, including a 14-year old boy, in a jeep carrying Zubeidi. On November 15, following Arafat's death, Israeli forces launched an incursion in Jenin to kill him, but he evaded them; in the raid, nine Palestinians were killed, including four civilians and his deputy, "Alaa". An arms cache was also found. Prior to these incidents, another attempt was undertaken by a Palestinian; Zubeidi had his hands broken as a punishment.
Zubeidi was at the center of controversy in 2004 when Tali Fahima
, an Israeli legal secretary, was imprisoned because of her contacts with him. She was accused of preventing his arrest by the IDF by translating a document for him. Both of them deny allegations that they had a romantic relationship. He stated that year, "The intifada is in its death throes. These are the final stages.... Not only was the intifada a failure, but we are a total failure. We achieved nothing in 50 years of struggle; we've achieved only our survival."
who won the election. The two were in contact with each other and Zubeidi, despite being considered a loose cannon and dangerously outspoken, appreciated Abbas' "subdued no-nonsense style." In December 2004, Israeli sources criticized Abbas for meeting Zubeidi. Despite his willingness to agree with Abbas' election to the presidency, Zubeidi still said he did not trust Abbas with the Palestinians' national constants which to him were the status of Jerusalem and the right of return
for Palestinian refugee
s. According to him Arafat was the only figure who could fulfill those aspirations, claiming this was "why he was poisoned... why Israel killed him."
In September 2005 he declared that his group's cease-fire was at an end after Samer Saadi
and two other militants were killed by Israeli forces in Jenin. Nevertheless, around this time Zubeidi told a Swedish nurse named Jonatan Stanczak that he wanted to re-establish his links with the Jewish peace movement. The way he spoke of Arna's project led Stanczak to contact Mer-Khamis and within six months they re-established the Freedom Theater in Jenin, which opened in February 2006. On July 6, 2006, the IDF
attempted to capture Zubeidi at a funeral, but he escaped after an exchange of gunfire.
In an interview on April 4, 2008, he stated that he still did not receive a full pardon by Israel, blaming the PA for "lying" to him. He continued to sleep at the PA's Jenin headquarters and received a salary of 1,050 NIS instead of previous 2000 NIS. Asked why he stopped fighting even when he did not receive a full pardon, Zubeidi answered "because of the conflict between Fatah and Hamas
. Look, it's perfectly clear to me that we won't be able to defeat Israel. My aim was for us, by means of the resistance, to get a message out to the world. Back in Abu 'Ammar
's day, we had a plan, there was a strategy, and we would carry his orders... now there's no one capable of using our actions to bring about... achievements." Zubeidi criticized the PA leadership, saying "they are whores. Our leadership is garbage." Faced with the question of whether or not he admitted defeat he claimed "Even [late Egyptian president] Gamal Abdel Nasser
admitted his defeat, so why not me?"
Prior to Fatah's Sixth Conference in August 2009, Zubeidi called for fellow Fatah to adopt a program of resistance in case peace negotiations with Israel fail and lead to a Third Intifada. Although he was accredited as a Fatah delegate, one of 2,000, to the conference in Bethlehem
, Zubeidi was momentarily refused entry to the meeting hall, resulting in condemnations by al-Aqsa Brigade members in Nablus
and Jenin, as well as those outside of the Palestinian territories
, who described the move as "stabbing the resistance in the back." Fatah officials allowed him to attend on August 5, 2009. The PA was also asked by brigade members to ensure Zubeidi's safety from Bethlehem back to Jenin. A number of right-wing Israeli Knesset
members submitted a petition to the Israeli military court on August 6 calling for the arrest of Zubeidi because his "hands have Israeli blood [on them]," despite being granted amnesty. Giving a speech at the conference the same day, Zubeidi suggested the Fatah-ruled West Bank reunite with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip through force, if necessary. He criticized the "old leadership," condemning them for failing the Palestinian people, saying "During 18 years of negotiations [under Fatah], no hope has been created." Zubeidi suggested a younger generation of Palestinians should lead Fatah.
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
militant leader, who recently ended his years on Israel's most-wanted list by handing over his guns to the Palestinian National Authority
Palestinian National Authority
The Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...
and accepting Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i amnesty. He had been the Jenin
Jenin
Jenin is the largest town in the Northern West Bank, and the third largest city overall. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate and is a major agricultural center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, the city had a population of 120,004 not including the adjacent refugee...
chief of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades is a coalition of Palestinian nationalist militias in the West Bank. The group's name refers to the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem...
, and alleged to be a chief strategist of suicide bombers by the Israeli government. However, in mid-2007, he renounced militancy and committed himself to cultural resistance through theater. He is considered a "symbol of the Intifada". Zubeidi is currently married with two children—a son, Muhammad, and a daughter.
Early life
Zubeidi's father, Muhammad, had been an English teacher, but was prevented from teaching by the Israelis after he was convicted of FatahFatah
Fataḥ is a major Palestinian political party and the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization , a multi-party confederation. In Palestinian politics it is on the left-wing of the spectrum; it is mainly nationalist, although not predominantly socialist. Its official goals are found...
membership in the late 1960's. He worked instead as a labourer in an Israeli iron foundry, did some private teaching on the side, and became a peace activist. The first Israeli Zubeidi had ever met was the soldier who came to take away his father for alleged membership of Fatah. His father died of cancer, leaving Zubeidi's mother Samira to raise their eight children alone.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, during the First Intifada
First Intifada
The First Intifada was a Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories. The uprising began in the Jabalia refugee camp and quickly spread throughout Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem....
, Israeli human rights activist Arna Mer-Khamis
Arna Mer-Khamis
Arna Mer-Khamis was an Israeli Jewish political and human rights activist.- Biography :Mer was born in 1929, in Rosh Pinna, then in Mandate Palestine. She fought with the Palmach and Israel Defense Forces during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War...
opened a children's theater in Jenin, "Arna's House", to encourage understanding between Israelis and Palestinians. Dozens of Israeli volunteers ran the events, and Samira, believing that peace was possible, offered the top floor of the family house for rehearsals. Zubeidi, then aged 12, his older brother Daoud, and four other boys around the same age formed the core of the troupe.
Zubeidi attended the UNRWA school in Jenin Refugee Camp, and by all accounts was a good student. In 1989, at age 13, he was shot in the leg as he threw stones at Israeli soldiers. He was hospitalised for six months and underwent four operations, but was left permanently affected, with one leg shorter than the other and a noticeable limp. At age 15, he was arrested for the first time (again for throwing stones) and jailed for six months. At that time he had become the representative of the other child prisoners to the governor. He dropped out of high school in his first year after being released. Soon after, he was arrested again for throwing Molotov cocktail
Molotov cocktail
The Molotov cocktail, also known as the petrol bomb, gasoline bomb, Molotov bomb, fire bottle, fire bomb, or simply Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary weapons...
s and imprisoned for 4 and a half years. In prison, he learned Hebrew, and became politically active, joining Fatah.
On release after the 1993 Oslo Accords
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
, he joined the Palestinian Authority's Palestinian Security Forces
Palestinian Security Forces
The Palestinian National Security Forces, also referred to as the presidential guard are the paramilitary forces of the Palestinian National Authority...
He became a sergeant, but left, disillusioned, after a year, complaining: "There were colleagues whom I had taught to read who were promoted to senior positions because of nepotism and corruption."
He went to work illegally in Israel, and for two years earned a good living as a contractor for home renovations in Tel Aviv and Haifa. He was eventually apprehended in Afula and after a brief incarceration for working in Israel without a permit, deported back to Jenin. With his path to work in Israel blocked, Zubeidi turned to auto theft. In 1997, he was caught with a stolen car, and was given a fifteen-month sentence. He served the time, was released and returned to the camp. He became a truck driver in Jenin, transporting flour and olive oil, but in September 2000 lost his job when the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
was sealed off due to the Second Intifada.
Battle of Jenin
Zubeidi himself traces his entry into armed militancy back to late 2001 when, after the killing of a close friend, he learned to become a bombmaker. Then, on 3 March 2002, one month before the main assault on the refugee camp, his mother was killed during an Israeli raid into Jenin. She had taken refuge in a neighbor's home and was shot by an IDF sniper who targeted her as she stood near a window. She subsequently bled to death. Zubeidi's brother Taha was also killed by soldiers shortly afterward. A month later, a suicide bomber from Jenin killed 29 IsraelisPassover massacre
The Passover massacre was a suicide bombing carried out by Hamas at the Park Hotel in Netanya, Israel on March 27, 2002, during a Passover seder. Thirty civilians were killed in the attack and 140 were injured...
. The Israeli Army then launched a full-scale offensive in the Jenin refugee camp
Battle of Jenin
The Battle of Jenin took place in the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank. Israel Defense Forces entered the camp, and other areas under the administration of the Palestinian Authority, during the Second Intifada, as part of Operation Defensive Shield...
, demolishing hundreds of homes, leaving 2,000 homeless. Ten days of fighting ensued after which 52 Palestinians and 23 Israeli soldiers were dead.
On top of his grief for his family and friends, Zubeidi was greatly embittered by the fact that none of the Israelis who had accepted his mother's hospitality, and whom he had thought were his friends, tried to contact him.
In a 2006 interview he stated angrily, "You took our house and our mother and you killed our brother. We gave you everything and what did we get in return? A bullet in my mother’s chest. We opened our home and you demolished it. Every week, 20-30 Israelis would come to do theatre there. We fed them. And afterward, not one of them picked up the phone. That is when we saw the real face of the left in Israel."
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades may reach peace with Israel, he says, but he won’t personally. He won’t forgive the killing of his mother and brother and the razing of his house.
Losing hope in the Israeli peace camp, he joined the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades is a coalition of Palestinian nationalist militias in the West Bank. The group's name refers to the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem...
, an armed wing of Fatah. Arna's son, Israeli actor Juliano Mer-Khamis
Juliano Mer-Khamis
Juliano Mer-Khamis was an Israeli actor, director, filmmaker and political activist of Jewish and Christian Arab parentage. On 4 April 2011, he was assassinated by a masked gunman in the Palestinian city of Jenin, where he established the Freedom Theatre....
, did return to Jenin in 2002 and looked for the boys who had been in the theater group. Zubeidi had turned to armed resistance, Daoud was sentenced to 16 years in prison for militant activities, and the other four were dead. In 2004, Mer-Khamis completed a documentary film about the group, Arna's Children
Arna's Children
Arna's Children is a 2003 Israeli/Dutch documentary film directed by Juliano Mer Khamis and Danniel Danniel about a children's theater group in Jenin in the Palestinian territories established by Arna Mer-Khamis, the director's mother, an Israeli Jewish political and human rights activist.The film...
. Zubeidi's face was slightly disfigured by fragments of shrapnel from a bomb that he mishandled in 2003.
Power-broker of Jenin
He took responsibility for a bombing in Tel Aviv that killed one woman and injured more than 30 in June 2004. During this period, he was considered the primary power-broker and most powerful man in Jenin. Zubeidi was de facto in charge of law and order in the city. He viewed the PA security forces as having little presence other than "disturbing traffic." Although he developed a friendly relationship with the former Palestinian president and Fatah head, Yasser ArafatYasser Arafat
Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
, recalling him saying "'Zakaria, buddy, I love you, we're marching to Jerusalem!'", Zubeidi also stated "I don't take orders from anyone. I'm not good at following." At the time, he was enthusiastic about the intifada, dismissing the view of Palestinians who wanted to end it and warned the new generation of Palestinians would "fight better".
In June 2004, he kidnapped the then PA governor of Jenin, Haidar Irshard, and in Zubeidi's own words, "beat the shit out of him" for refusing to pay salaries to the al-Aqsa Brigades. He also burnt down the local office of the Palestinian Legislative Council
Palestinian Legislative Council
The Palestinian Legislative Council, the legislature of the Palestinian Authority, is a unicameral body with 132 members, elected from 16 electoral districts in the West Bank and Gaza...
. Four attempts by Israel have been made to assassinate him. In one such attempt, in 2004, an Israeli police unit killed five other brigade members, including a 14-year old boy, in a jeep carrying Zubeidi. On November 15, following Arafat's death, Israeli forces launched an incursion in Jenin to kill him, but he evaded them; in the raid, nine Palestinians were killed, including four civilians and his deputy, "Alaa". An arms cache was also found. Prior to these incidents, another attempt was undertaken by a Palestinian; Zubeidi had his hands broken as a punishment.
Zubeidi was at the center of controversy in 2004 when Tali Fahima
Tali Fahima
Tali Fahima is an Israeli woman, who was convicted for her contacts with Zakaria Zubeidi, Jenin chief of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades. She describes her nationality as Palestinian....
, an Israeli legal secretary, was imprisoned because of her contacts with him. She was accused of preventing his arrest by the IDF by translating a document for him. Both of them deny allegations that they had a romantic relationship. He stated that year, "The intifada is in its death throes. These are the final stages.... Not only was the intifada a failure, but we are a total failure. We achieved nothing in 50 years of struggle; we've achieved only our survival."
Elections and renewed conflict with Israel
During the Palestinian presidential elections in 2004, Zubeidi initially endorsed Marwan Bargouti, but due to Barghouti's imprisonment, he soon decided to give his support for Mahmoud AbbasMahmoud Abbas
Mahmoud Abbas , also known by the kunya Abu Mazen , has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah ticket.Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally...
who won the election. The two were in contact with each other and Zubeidi, despite being considered a loose cannon and dangerously outspoken, appreciated Abbas' "subdued no-nonsense style." In December 2004, Israeli sources criticized Abbas for meeting Zubeidi. Despite his willingness to agree with Abbas' election to the presidency, Zubeidi still said he did not trust Abbas with the Palestinians' national constants which to him were the status of Jerusalem and the right of return
Right of return
The term right of return refers to a principle of international law, codified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, giving any person the right to return to, and re-enter, his or her country of origin...
for Palestinian refugee
Palestinian refugee
Palestinian refugees or Palestine refugees are the people and their descendants, predominantly Palestinian Arabic-speakers, who fled or were expelled from their homes during and after the 1948 Palestine War, within that part of the British Mandate of Palestine, that after that war became the...
s. According to him Arafat was the only figure who could fulfill those aspirations, claiming this was "why he was poisoned... why Israel killed him."
In September 2005 he declared that his group's cease-fire was at an end after Samer Saadi
Samer Saadi
Samer Saadi was a leading figure in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades in Jenin.He was killed during an Israeli incursion into Jenin in the West Bank, along with two other Palestinian militants...
and two other militants were killed by Israeli forces in Jenin. Nevertheless, around this time Zubeidi told a Swedish nurse named Jonatan Stanczak that he wanted to re-establish his links with the Jewish peace movement. The way he spoke of Arna's project led Stanczak to contact Mer-Khamis and within six months they re-established the Freedom Theater in Jenin, which opened in February 2006. On July 6, 2006, the IDF
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
attempted to capture Zubeidi at a funeral, but he escaped after an exchange of gunfire.
Amnesty
On July 15, 2007, the Office of the Israeli Prime Minister announced that Israel would include Zubeidi in an amnesty offered to militants of Fatah's al-Aqsa-Brigades. As of 2008, he was involved with the Freedom Theatre in the Jenin refugee camp, where children can study theatre and experience the growing art and music culture surrounding the Palestine International Film festivals.In an interview on April 4, 2008, he stated that he still did not receive a full pardon by Israel, blaming the PA for "lying" to him. He continued to sleep at the PA's Jenin headquarters and received a salary of 1,050 NIS instead of previous 2000 NIS. Asked why he stopped fighting even when he did not receive a full pardon, Zubeidi answered "because of the conflict between Fatah and Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
. Look, it's perfectly clear to me that we won't be able to defeat Israel. My aim was for us, by means of the resistance, to get a message out to the world. Back in Abu 'Ammar
Yasser Arafat
Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
's day, we had a plan, there was a strategy, and we would carry his orders... now there's no one capable of using our actions to bring about... achievements." Zubeidi criticized the PA leadership, saying "they are whores. Our leadership is garbage." Faced with the question of whether or not he admitted defeat he claimed "Even [late Egyptian president] Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
admitted his defeat, so why not me?"
Prior to Fatah's Sixth Conference in August 2009, Zubeidi called for fellow Fatah to adopt a program of resistance in case peace negotiations with Israel fail and lead to a Third Intifada. Although he was accredited as a Fatah delegate, one of 2,000, to the conference in Bethlehem
Bethlehem
Bethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
, Zubeidi was momentarily refused entry to the meeting hall, resulting in condemnations by al-Aqsa Brigade members in Nablus
Nablus
Nablus is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank, approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 126,132. Located in a strategic position between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a Palestinian commercial and cultural center.Founded by the...
and Jenin, as well as those outside of the Palestinian territories
Palestinian territories
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...
, who described the move as "stabbing the resistance in the back." Fatah officials allowed him to attend on August 5, 2009. The PA was also asked by brigade members to ensure Zubeidi's safety from Bethlehem back to Jenin. A number of right-wing Israeli Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
members submitted a petition to the Israeli military court on August 6 calling for the arrest of Zubeidi because his "hands have Israeli blood [on them]," despite being granted amnesty. Giving a speech at the conference the same day, Zubeidi suggested the Fatah-ruled West Bank reunite with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip through force, if necessary. He criticized the "old leadership," condemning them for failing the Palestinian people, saying "During 18 years of negotiations [under Fatah], no hope has been created." Zubeidi suggested a younger generation of Palestinians should lead Fatah.
External links
- 'We are at war', Al-Ahram, 1 December 2004
- Video: Zakariya Zubeidi Resistance Leader: A Changed Man